IT News HeadLines (HardOCP) 16/08/2010

Microsoft's 30-Day Forecast: Stormy
Microsoft is predicting a record number of recently patched bugs to be exploited over the next 30 days. If you haven't downloaded the latest patches through Windows Update, now would be a good time. Security researchers yesterday essentially agreed with Microsoft that the month ahead could be rocky for users who are slow to apply patches. Most contacted by Computerworld believe exploits will quickly appear for several of the vulnerabilities patched Tuesday, including a pair of media-related bugs, several in Office 2007, six in Internet Explorer, and another pair in Silverlight, Microsoft's answer to Adobe's Flash. Comments
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Apple Patent Opens a New Frontier for Gaming--Documenting
Apple, a company not well known for its gaming presence, may be making a move into the industry with its new patent application for role documentation in video games. The system would basically keep track of whatever you do in the game, take pictures or screen shots of your character and other people, places, and things you encounter in the game. It would even create dialogue to go along with the scenes. Comments
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Camera Makers Take 3D to the Living Room
Camcorders are up scaling to 3D to entice the high end video market crowd . This week, two companies rolled out new products in the 3D venue, one on the high end and the more on the economy end of the spectrum. With 3D movies now mainstream fare in theaters and 3D TVs adorning retail shelves, it was only a matter of time before 3D consumer camcorders would begin to hit the market. That time was this week as two camcorder makers, Panasonic and DXG USA announced 3D camcorder products. Comments
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PayPal Hopes To Make Micropayments Easier Online
PayPal will be instituting a micropayment system by the end of this year. The system works by compiling small purchases made at different times into one larger purchase. PayPal believes this will not only benefit the purchaser but it will increase bottom line by increasing the company's sales significantly. Online micropayments are not new. They emerged in the 1990s but never really caught on, in part because early attempts often had people spend tiny amounts of money - a dime here, a quarter there - instead of the currently popular model where you buy a bunch of credits up front and use them a little at a time. But consumers are now much more used to the idea of buying virtual goods in online games and downloading content like songs and videos, and this change in behavior could benefit PayPal. Comments
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Presenting the Stalking Wheelchair
Japanese scientists at Saitama University are developing a wheelchair that can follow movements of a person standing next to it. "Care facilities sometimes don't have enough staff, so a single helper has to push two wheelchairs," a Saitama spokesperson says in a news report. "With wheelchairs like this, which can follow automatically, you can have two, three, or four moving together. So we aim to use this type of wheelchair in practical applications." No dancing, please. Comments
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MagicTalk Eliminates Calling Costs
The company behind MagicJack has created a new program called MagicTalk that will have no calling fees when calling from computers, smart phones and iPads. Free is always good. MagicTalk would go one better by eliminating fees for calling landline and cell phones in the U.S. and Canada, with no time limits on the calls.The software will be available next week for Windows and Mac computers. Versions for the iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry and Android phones will follow in September or October, said Dan Borislow, the CEO of VocalTec Communications Ltd Comments
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21 Signs You've Been Spoiled Rotten by Technology
Most of us lead an easy life technologically speaking and it really shows when things just don't go our way all of the time. Expectations are high that everything will perform perfectly and if not, suffer our wrath. You, good people, are spoiled geeks. We are living in a geek's paradise. We are so spoiled by our gadgets and the Internet that we expect everything to be automated, digitized, and customized, not to mention responsive to the swipe of a finger. Technology has rewired our brains, altered our expectations, and, frankly, turned us all into cranks. Comments
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New Video Game Will Let You Play as the Taliban
EA's release of Medal of Honor: Battlefield 3 Beta slated for October is a slam dunk for controversy from all sides. The battlefield is modern day Afghanistan and the players will be the US forces pitted against the Taliban. Whether or not the intent was provocative, the result will be swift and vocal from the media all the way to Congress. Wouldn't you prefer a nice game of chess? "In all combat simulations that we've entertained ourselves with, from pen and paper to movies and literature, you've always been able to experience combat from the enemy's perspective," he told AOL News. "That's always been a draw about some of the best films that have been done about World War II."At the end of the day, "It's a game," the title's producer, Patrick Liu, told PSM3 magazine, adding that DICA and EA had no intention of provoking a reaction. Comments
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China to Build State-Run Search Engine
Put this in the I'm not really surprised columnÂ….China will be building and controlling the operations of its own search engine since censorship differences with Google have grown. Google now operates its Chinese-language search engine from Hong Kong; it is accessible from China but some results are censored by the government. China already has the world's largest number of Internet users, more than 420 million, and also the largest number of mobile phone subscribers, more than 800 million. Private startup companies play a big role on the Web in China, but the government maintains tight control over Internet firms and censors what it deems to be dangerous or sensitive content. Comments
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Black Ops Prestige Edition Ships With Full-Blown RC Spy Vehicle
Call of Duty: Black Ops will ship with a special bundle that will let you not only play the game, but also get in on the action with the inclusion of a fully functional RC spy car featured in the game itself. Put this one on your wish list for Christmas and send it to your rich uncle. For the Prestige Edition, Treyarch and Activision created an entirely original remote controlled surveillance vehicle inspired by the RC-XD from Black Ops Multiplayer. With a range of up to 200 feet, the RC-XD Surveillance Vehicle has a fully-functioning remote camera that transmits both TFT color video and audio to its operator. The Prestige Edition is inclusive of the Hardened Edition, which includes a custom Black Ops limited edition medal, exclusive Black Ops Avatar outfit, as well as four playable cooperative maps. Comments
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